The Houston Texans brought in a great group of undrafted free agents after the 2024 NFL Draft. Some of the guys in the group have played some really meaningful football. Of course, it feels like that is said every year just for some of these guys to sit on the practice squad all year, but this year, the Texans have a few guys who could turn some heads.

Last week, the Texans kicked off Week 1 of OTAs, marking the return of football work on the field. They are back at it on Wednesday this week, continuing their preparations. This is a crucial time for the undrafted free agents to prove their worth and show that they are serious about making it in the NFL.

Here are three undrafted free-agent players to watch during Week 2 of OTAs:

Texans UDFAs to watch in Week 2 of OTAs

Pheldarius Payne, DT, Virginia Tech

The Texans got one of the best undrafted free agents in the entire 2024 class. It seems like the rest of the NFL forgot to draft him, including the Texans. Our college football expert, Travis May, wrote about Payne and his fit with the Texans.

At 6'2", 286 pounds (and he played lighter than that), he's a bit small to be an every-down interior defensive lineman, but the Texans could use him in a variety of pre-snap alignments to get him into advantageous matchups on pass rushes. He likely opens training camp as the fifth or sixth interior defensive lineman on the team but has real potential to become a sub-package pass rush talent immediately, as Lance Zierlein of NFL.com outlines perfectly here in the post below.

Payne has a chance to make it known he can be on the 53-man roster. He won't be able to do that at OTAs, especially as a defensive lineman, because you don't hit each other in OTAs. But he can get to work and just try to outwork everyone. The talent and size are certainly there.

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Max Tooley, LB, BYU

The Houston Texans don't necessarily need another linebacker; they are scrambling to find one. However, they could use some depth. Tooley has a chance to make the 53-man roster because of how he played in college at BYU. He was a pivotal part of some of their great defensive games and even had a few takeaways.

The biggest thing about Tooley, though, is that he loves football. He fits the same mentality, mindset, and culture as the Texans. He's also pretty athletic—more than you would think. That will be the one part of his game that sticks out during OTAs, as he won't be able to hit anyone.

Tooley has a very legitimate chance of fighting for the backup linebacker spot at either the Mike or Will positions behind Hill and Hewitt. OTAs will be our first look at him and how he fits into the NFL lifestyle.

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British Brooks, RB, North Carolina

The Houston Texans need some depth in the running back room. Obviously, Joe Mixon will take the starting job, as the Texans traded for him this offseason. Dameon Pierce will likely have the backup position to start the season. However, Dare Ogunbuwale could easily challenge him for that spot, being that he is a third-down running back.

As for the fourth running back on the roster, it's really up for grabs. There is Brooks, who was undrafted, so he has to work his way up. Then there is Jahwar Jordan and J.J. Taylor. The competition won't be easy, but I think Brooks can make some noise, especially if he is willing to play special teams.

Houston Texans signed the best undrafted free agent pass rusher that the rest of the NFL forgot to draft

Texans snagged an underrated UDFA pass rusher